MORONGO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
PURCHASING GUIDE
BUSINESS SERVICES
PURCHASING DEPARTMENT
5715 UTAH TRAIL
29 PALMS, CA 92277
www.morongousd.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Purchase Order Process 4
Delivery /Site Receiving Instructions 5
Warehouse Request 6
Leasing and Renting 6
Purchasing Bidding Guidelines 6-13
Obsolete/Surplus Property 14-16
Purchasing Code of Ethics 17
I. PURCHASING PROCEDURES
A. General
1. The Purchasing Department exists to serve the District community in the selection, acquisition and utilization of materials and services in a manner that provides accountability for District expenditures. All purchases of goods and services must be done in an open and competitive environment to ensure that prices paid by the District are ‘fair and reasonable’. As a public institution, the District is committed to an environment that fosters open decision-making, practices and policies. Our business objective is to select vendors and suppliers on the basis of the quality of their respective products and services, in accordance with our stated policy and procedures in order to obtain the best value for the District.
2. It is the responsibility of the Purchasing Department to provide procurement oversight and to ensure that purchases are made in accordance with all applicable local, state and federal laws, regulations, codes and ordinances.
3. Questions regarding existing orders, vendors, availability of items, or other specific procurement problems should be directed to the Purchasing Department.
4. Reports of delays, inattention, or suggestions for improvements of purchasing methods are welcome by the Purchasing Department. If problems exist, contact the department directly.
B. Authority and Policy
1. The Purchasing Department has been given the exclusive authority, unless otherwise stated, to:
a. Initiate, conduct, and/or conclude negotiations concerning the purchase of materials, equipment, supplies, and services for the School District.
b. Obligate the School District for goods and services.
(1) Teachers, faculty and staff need to be very careful when responding to phone solicitations. Unscrupulous vendors will say they are sending you a free sample which will be followed by a case of the product and an invoice. They will not accept returns, so a big legal hassle begins. Do not get trapped.
Just say “NO THANK YOU!
(2) The Purchasing Department will not make personal purchases for faculty or staff members.
(3) Administrators may not sign contracts (including copier leases). Only the following cabinet members are given authority to sign contracts:
Tom Baumgarten, Superintendent
Sharon Flores, Assistant Superintendent of Business
Doug Weller, Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources
Lynn Lee, Director of Finance
II. PROCUREMENT METHODS, APPROVALS AND TAX EXEMPTION
A. Methods:
1. Approved methods for the purchasing of goods and services available to schools and
departments include:
a. Purchase Orders – This is the primary means used to procure goods and services.
b. Pre-Pay – This is when a vendor does not accept a Purchase Order, but will invoice you and you pre-pay for the service (used mostly with hotels). A requisition is still required, with the wording Pre-Payment selected in the Special Instructions drop-down field, and typed in the “Payment Field”.
2. All store credit cards are prohibited!
B. Approvals: All requisitions are submitted through Financial 2000. Requisitions will flow through the approval path based on account code structure, eventually making its way to Purchasing for final processing. Based on what the product is, and the dollar amount, Purchasing may source the item(s) out, leading to a lower cost, and possibly a different vendor.
C. Tax Exemption: Morongo Unified School District is not tax-exempt
III. PURCHASE ORDER PROCESS
1. Purchase Orders are created by the Director of Purchasing based upon electronic requisitions submitted by schools or departments.
Requisitions numbers shall not to be given to vendors in lieu of purchase order
numbers.
2. The following guidelines are provided to assist in preparing requisitions. Each
Requisition must include at a minimum the following information:
a. Good description or specification for each item to be ordered: Including catalog or manufacturer number, size, color, quantity, model number, or other details. In the case of Amazon.com, the ASIN under Product Details is always required on the requisition. Requisitions submitted without the ASIN will be rejected back to the originator for correction.
Attachments: If you have registration forms, quotes, or a proposal that needs to accompany the Purchase Order to the vendor, write the requisition number in the top right corner, and either email, or fax the attachment to purchasing.
b. Correct account code, with correct location/site noted. Make sure you have enough money in the account to be used or the processing will be delayed until a Budget Transfer is received by accounting to cover the expenditure.
c. Estimated/exact cost of each item on the requisition; if known include shipping cost. Tax is ALWAYS paid to the State Board of Equalization except for licenses where we only receive a link and no hard-copy of anything, so always include it on your requisition for any tangible goods being received.
d. If you have numerous purchases from one vendor, an Open Purchase Order (Open PO) can be submitted with certain parameters. All Open PO’s expire on June 30 of the school year, some sooner if it’s directly related to students and school is out earlier than June 30th. The Open PO number must be given to the vendor each time an order is placed.
IV. DELIVERY INSTRUCTIONS:
We are a central purchasing/central receiving district. All items ordered on a Purchase Order (PO), will be delivered to our District Receiving Warehouse, checked-in, processed, and then delivered to the ordering site. All deliveries to sites require a signature as “proof of delivery”. The only exception to this general rule is the Just-In-Time supply orders though Southwest School and Office, those are processed through the purchasing department and delivered directly to the school site. When the items arrive from Southwest School and Office, note shortages or any damage and contact the vendor right away at the phone number on the packing list. If no damage or shortage is noted, check the items in on the packing list by “ticking” them off, sign the packing list and send it to accounting right away.
V. WAREHOUSE REQUISITIONS
The District Warehouse carries paper and other items purchased in bulk to save shipping costs (whiteboards, laminating film, facial tissue). A Stores Requisition is processed through Financial 2000 as a normal requisition would be processed.
VI. LEASING AND RENTING
The District has secured contract pricing for various copier and duplicator models. Contact the Purchasing Department at for any equipment information. All potential leases or rentals must be pre-approved by the Business Office after purchasing has reviewed all terms and conditions of the lease/rental, and deemed it is in the best interest of the District to lease/rent.
VII. PURCHASING BIDDING GUIDELINES
Business and Non-Instructional Operations
BIDS AR3311
I. Purchasing Bidding Guidelines
Where required by statute, staff shall secure bids. Authority to authorize contracts, leases and lease purchase agreements on behalf of the School District is to be conducted by the Superintendent or designee. To ensure that the School District is obtaining materials and services at the most competitive price, state law requires “comparative shopping” before the purchase is made. The guidelines for comparative shopping vary according to the size of the purchase, type of purchase and range from informal price quotes to official Formal advertised requests for sealed bids. These guidelines are described as follows:
1. Informal quotes- Typically, equipment, services and supplies up to $88,300.00 are sourced out by purchasing (changes annually on January 1st). The employee responsible for the purchase may obtain the quotes as well, but in the case of equipment or supply, the purchasing staff will do cross comparisons with their approved vendors to make sure the District is getting the best price possible.
2. Formal Advertised bids- All purchases that exceed the amount specified in law, and as annually adjusted by the Superintendent of Public Instruction (Government Code 53060;
Public Contract Code 20111 must go through the advertised bid procedure required by the State of California. (Public Contract Code section 20111) The recommended award must then be approved by the Board of Education. District funds cannot be committed prior to Board approval on purchases of any size. Advertised bids are handled by the Purchasing Department. The bid process may take six to eight weeks.
As of January 1, 2017 the current bid threshold is $88,300.00.
Formal Bid Process:
A. The School District must publish a notice calling for bids at least once a week for two weeks in a newspaper of general circulation or a newspaper published within the boundaries of the School District.
B. The notice calling for bids must include the following information:
· A description of the work to be performed and/or materials to be supplied;
· The place where the bids are to be received and opened;
· The deadline for receipt of bids and the time when such bids will be opened;
C. Bid instructions and specifications shall include the following requirements and information:
· All bids for construction work shall be presented under sealed cover and shall be accompanied by one of the following forms of bidder’s security: (Public Contract Code sections 20107, 20111)
o A cashier’s check.
o A bidder’s bond executed by an admitted surety insurer and made payable to the School District.
· The security of unsuccessful bidders shall be returned in a reasonable period on time, in no event later than 60 days after the bid is awarded. (Public Contract Code section 20129)
· Under no condition shall bids be accepted after the advertised bid opening time, regardless of whether the bids are actually opened at that time. (Public Contract Code section 20112)
· When two or more identical bids are received, the Board may determine by lot which bid shall be accepted. (Public Contract Code sections 20117, 22038)
· Any subsequent change or alteration of a contract shall be governed by the provisions of Public Contract Code section 20118.4.
· After being opened, all advertised bids shall be made available for review by all interested parties.
D. The project must be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder, but if no bids are received, the project may be performed by the employees of the School District by force account or negotiation contract (Public Contract Code section 22038).
E. After formal bids are received, rather than award the project to the lowest responsible bidder, the School District may:
· Abandon the project or re-advertise for bids; or
· By resolution adopted by 4/5th vote, declare that the project may be performed more economically by the employees of the School District.
3. General Conditions
The Governing Board shall reserve the right to reject any and all bids and waive any irregularities or informalities in any bid or in the bidding.
The Governing Board shall reserve the right to enter into a continuing contract with an accepted vendor for work or services, or for apparatus or equipment, not to exceed five years; for materials, or supplies not to exceed three years. (Education Code section 17596)
All bidders shall be given an equal opportunity to qualify for the School District’s business.
4. Protests by Bidders
A bidder may protest a bid award if he/she believes that the award was inconsistent with Governing Board policy, the bid's specifications, or not in compliance with law.
A protest must be filed in writing with the Superintendent or designee within five working days after receipt of notification of the contract award. The bidder shall submit all documents supporting or justifying the protest. A bidder's failure to timely file a protest shall constitute a waiver of his/her right to protest the award of the contract.
The Superintendent or designee shall review the documents submitted with the bidder's claims and render a decision in writing within 30 working days. The Superintendent or designee also may convene a meeting with the bidder in order to attempt to resolve the problem.
The bidder may appeal the Superintendent or designee's decision to the Governing Board. The Superintendent or designee shall provide reasonable notice to the bidder of the time for Governing Board consideration of the contract award.
5. Specifications
Specifications shall be established that are descriptive of materials or equipment desired that are sufficiently broad to promote competitive bidding. The specifications shall include a general description of the item or items and its functional performance and may refer to a brand name, number or equal. The term "or equal" as used in all bidding by the district means "or equal" in the evaluation as determined by the purchaser and not by the vendor.
Bids shall be publicly opened and read at the prescribed time and place as set forth in the bidding instructions, and tabulated for study. Bidders shall be given the opportunity to make a record of the bids received.
When proper study has been given to a bid and the findings have been completed, a report shall be made to the Governing Board as follows:
1. The number of companies that have been requested to bid.
2. A list of the companies to whom the Purchasing Department and the Project Manager recommends that the bids be awarded.
II. Exceptions to Formal Bidding Procedures above:
1. Emergencies (Public Contract Code section 22050).
A. The School District need not comply with formal or informal bidding procedures in cases of emergency (Public Contract Code sections 20113 and 22035)
B. An emergency exists when any repair, alteration, work or improvement to any existing facility of the public school is necessary to permit the continuation of existing school classes or to avoid danger to life or property, and in either such event, there is no time for competitive bidding (Public Contract Code section 20113).
C. Procedure for adopting an emergency measure.
1. With respect to projects under the general competitive bidding laws (Public Contract Code sections 20111 et. seq.), the measure must be adopted by the unanimous vote of the Governing Board and approved by the County Superintendent of Schools. (Public Contract Code section 20113)